Apple wine

[Scooter68]

That can work. Most folks do that before bottling of course. I have a stubborn 3 gallon batch of peach wine that has cleared somewhat after a couple of days outside in the lower 40s temps. Right now it 24 outside headed towards about 35 today so I'm going to put that carboy out side. The alcohol content should protect it from freezing until the temps rise in a couple of hours

Cold crashing as it's called does help clear some wines in some situations.

 

[meadmaker1]

You could have cold crash the intire batch befor bottling. Depending on how large the batch, there ard a variety of ways to do this. Gallon jugs in a fridge. A dedicated fridge for carboys or i use a container that holds a carboy and i ice it. Sometimes adding salt to make colder. Some climates yoj can just stick them outside

 

[BernardSmith]

Hi DKing - and welcome. Looks like what you are doing is hijacking a thread started by another member. In forums like this that is considered as impolite but as you are a newcomer I assume that no one will make a big deal out of this, but always best to start a new thread if you are starting a new conversation. OK. That said, "cold crashing" is a technique that brewers (makers of beer) tend to engage in more than wine makers. Perhaps they need their gratification more quickly. Brewing, after all, takes - what? - about a month and you can be drinking that beer in another couple of weeks. Wine tends to take months to age and you generally think about drinking the wine you made after a year or so at soonest. But placing a carboy or bottle in the fridge forces the yeast out of suspension and I suspect as the yeast fall towards the bottom they drag with them all kinds of particles floating in suspension. Add to that the pressure exerted by all the CO2 that is likely saturating your wine (unless you degas) at room temperature now drops as the temperature falls and that drop in pressure allows more particles to fall out of suspension. Indeed, when I rack from primary to secondary , and I generally make a larger volume than will fit my secondary I bottle the extra with the sediment (the lees) and place this bottle (mason jar) in the fridge and after 24-48 hours all the liquid has separated from the sediment. Cold crashing. It's a useful technique.

 

[Tinwakr]

Well, a week and a half and the apple wine is still bubbling away, I checked the SG today and is at 1.050. Is this normal for apple wine to ferment this long?

 

[Arne]

Well, a week and a half and the apple wine is still bubbling away, I checked the SG today and is at 1.050. Is this normal for apple wine to ferment this long?

Maybe. I have had ferments blow thru in 3 or 4 days. Have also had them take well over a month. Probably average a week and a half to two weeks. Believe it has to do with temperatures (warm temps make faster ferments, cooler temps slow them down), nutrients, amount of sulfites, health and kind of yeast, getting enough oxygen to the ferment, and maybe the moon phase. As long as you are not getting any strange oders and the ferment is coming along you should be fine. Good luck with it, Arne.

 

[Thig]

Well, a week and a half and the apple wine is still bubbling away, I checked the SG today and is at 1.050. Is this normal for apple wine to ferment this long?

As long as it is still moving I think slower is better, I have an apple in the primary now that has gone from 1.080 to 1.055 in 2 days.

 

[Tinwakr]

Maybe. I have had ferments blow thru in 3 or 4 days. Have also had them take well over a month. Probably average a week and a half to two weeks. Believe it has to do with temperatures (warm temps make faster ferments, cooler temps slow them down), nutrients, amount of sulfites, health and kind of yeast, getting enough oxygen to the ferment, and maybe the moon phase. As long as you are not getting any strange oders and the ferment is coming along you should be fine. Good luck with it, Arne.

Makes sense, we keep our house at about 68-70

 

[Cecil veley 3rd]

I started fermentation of a gallon of apple wine a week ago.View attachment 52121

Now a week later the fermentation has slowed considerably, when do I rack into another container?

I leave mine alone n do it when I have time.

 

[Tinwakr]

The last two days the SG hasn’t changed from 1.050, still have bubbling in the wine and airlock is still bubbling but slowing. Can I expect the SG to drop more yet?

 

[cooknhogz]

I have a mead doing the same thing. I’m just letting it ride. I’ll be checking the sg this weekend and let you know if mine dropped. Saturday will be two weeks since the last time I checked.

 

[G259]

It's called 'Cold crashing' I believe. I'm not sure of any negative consequences, if any. Maybe less flavor?

 

[G259]

If you are getting a lot of bubbling, I'm going to say that it is fermenting.

 

[sour_grapes]

The last two days the SG hasn’t changed from 1.050, still have bubbling in the wine and airlock is still bubbling but slowing. Can I expect the SG to drop more yet?

How are you measuring the SG? Hydrometer?

 

[G259]

1.050 or 1.005, that changes the answer. Easy mistake to make.

 

[Tinwakr]

Yes, hydrometer, I am sure that I am reading it right, 1.050. I will post a pic later
Today.

 

[winemaker81]

Cold crashing, also called cold stabilization, is a common technique in wine making.

I'm originally from Upstate NY and got my grapes & juice from the Finger Lakes region. Finger Lakes whites tend to be high in acid. Instead of chemicals, I put my wine on the porch in the winter (temperature on the porch typically 32 to 40 F) and let it set for a week or two, keeping an eye on the weather. Excess tartaric acid precipitated as crystals, which has the side effect of acting as a fining agent. Rack the wine without letting it warm up.

Of course, it's best to do this before bottling. ;-)

Most people don't have room to refrigerate a 5 or 6 gallon carboy, but the same technique can be done using gallon jugs. It just takes longer. Be mindful of air space.

 

[winemaker81]

Tinwakr, I have a few suggestions. Most won't help you with this batch, but are food for thought.

1. Ferment in an open container, a food grade bucket. Cover it loosely with a towel to keep things out. Initial fermentation wants oxygen -- it's post-fermentation when oxygen should be avoided.

2. If you want a 1 gallon batch, start with more. You'll lose volume to sediment and this way you'll have top-up. When you rack from the bucket, keep the excess in smaller bottles. [I have a large collection of bottles of many sizes, drilled corks to fit them all, and a forest of airlocks.]

3. There is no need to top up until fermentation is complete. The CO2 produced will keep air off the wine. If you add more apple juice now, that juice will start fermenting. -- Actually, that may not be a bad thing.

4. When fermentation is complete, if you need top-up (from the photo it appears you will), stabilize the wine with sorbate and top up with juice. Or add a mild white wine.

The more I think about it, you can move the wine to a primary fermenter (since you have active fermentation) and add more juice. Giving it more oxygen may spur fermentation, and you'll have the top-up you need.

 

[Country]

I just back sweetened my 5 gallon batch with apple juice concentrate (reccomend) and had the fermentation start back up again. This after kmeta and sorbate. Well, you never know when working with wine. It’s always an adventure.

 

[Scooter68]

How old was the sorbate? Sorbate seems to have a shorter shelf life and that might be the cause of the fermentation restart.

 

[Country]

The sorbate was a new pack that I did not use from a wine kit. It was for a dry red wine and was only about half of what I should have put in. That was my mistake, I think. I cold crashed in the fridge and racked after three days. Will leave it in there for another week and rack again. If it still want to ferment, I’ll just let it go back to dry and try the back sweetening again when it’s done. My cider was only at 8.5 % ABV so this is really not a problem